Lost Child: Tobiume
by Yemi Hikari
Summary: Star crossed lovers are fated to never be together in the end as tragedy pulls them apart. Some things are never meant to be. (Two one-shot AU's related to the story Lost Child.)
1. Goodbye Momo

_Disclaimer – I don't own Bleach. This one-shot is written for forever122 and is AU to where I plan on taking the story Lost Child. They in particular know what that is. It is highly suggested that people read chapters one through nineteen of Lost Child before reading this as Lost Child is in itself an AU for the Bleach canon time line._

**Lost Child: Tobiume  
****_~Goodbye Momo~_**

If there was something Sojiro was sure of when he entered the academy it was that he had no time for flirting with the females as he had his mind fully set on graduating with full honors. He walked through the academy wondering why the girls flocked to him and tried flirting with him. That was how he ended up in the library that day. Letting out a deep breath he found himself wondering that question when he saw the perfect quiet place to slip in and simply study as the female sitting at the table payed him no mind.

He couldn't help but notice that she was becoming frustrated and decided that her being frustrated with her studies that she would be too much of a distraction in that manner so decided to offer up help in her studies. His mind began to think and he realized that they were in the same year and he hoped she wasn't trying to trick him into studying with her. Instead he found out that the girl was upset about the death of her granny as well as the comatose state of her little brother...

...a little brother who should have been the child genius that would have pushed him in his final year of study.

He found himself suddenly attached to her and would hold random conversations with her and went out of his way to ask her to study with him simply to find out about her brother. It was obvious that the two were not blood related as her skills were far from that of a child genius despite being in the advanced class like she was. Still, he found himself enjoying her company and was glad to hear that her brother... despite not being able to speak to anyone was slowly getting better.

He came to realize that he had feelings for her, feelings that he had planned on not having while he studied at the academy. Letting out a deep breath he found himself making the decision to ask her out. "_If I ask her out, even marry her I can be the one to take care of her and her little brother. I don't have to wait for her little brother to regain is cognitive functions for me to have a goal and a reason to become stronger. I will have something important to protect._"

Walking over to the small female he tapped on her shoulder. "Hey... Hinamori... would you like to go and train with me on the plain?"

The girl looked up, blinking a couple of times. "Sure. I mean, I don't see why not. I actually think I'm getting better when I train with you. Kira and Renji don't work at my pace and the distance between us skill wise is growing, but you know how to match my pace. You would make a good teacher you know."

"_Well... at least she's to the point she can admit her weaknesses. I will ask her after practicing if she will go on an actual date with me rather then simply practicing._" They headed out and he smiled down at her. He didn't notice the jealous looks that followed them from some of the girls and they headed out to the plain area where they swung their swords.

It was then that he heard a voice. "_Hello_."

He felt himself pulled into what he thought was his inner world. Blinking a couple of times he saw a beautiful princess. The girl turned her head towards him and bowed. "Are you my master?"

"Yes..."

"My name... my name is Tobiume." The female remained bowed.

He then found himself reacting, calling out her name. "Snap, Tobiume."

Smoke appeared around him and he blinked a couple of times. "Hinamori... we have the same zampaktuo?"

Momo blinked a couple of times. "I... I don't get it."

It was then that a blurring sensation came and they found themselves in the forty-six chapters looking around and being told to fight. The two looked around, not understanding why the members were telling them to fight. Momo then spoke at his side. "I'm sorry."

"What?"

"I can't die here as Shiro-chan needs me."

"_For some reason I'm fine with this._"

"But promise me that you won't go easy on me. If you beat me, promise me that you'll take care of Shiro-chan."

"I promise." He felt their blades crash. "_I promise. But I don't want too..._"

He could feel then his blade cutting into her flesh and then she was gone. He was the owner of Tobiume and he was the one sent back. And yet he knew. He knew without Tobiume saying anything. "_You are not my master._"

Collapsing to his knees he didn't feel like moving. "_Why?_"

"_Why?_" The zampaktuo remained silent much to his pleasure only to speak again. "_You are stronger. So you will have to do._"

"_It's not as if I can sustain you._"

"_Yes... you can._" There came some silence. "_It would have been nice if my master could have known your feelings for her before she died, but I will have to settle with me knowing. You'll keep me alive because I am a memory of her. You'll also keep me alive because of the promise you made to her._"

"_What promise? To not go easy on her? If I had gone easy on her I would be the one who is dead._"

"_You promised to take care of Shiro-chan._"

"_She told me, Shiro-chan... Toshiro isn't able to be near males without freaking out._"

"_Try._"

Letting out a deep sigh he headed to the forth division wondering if the Shiba clan knew about Momo's death. Kaien frowned at him as he stood outside of the room. "Momo was supposed to visit Shiro-chan today. Why are you here?"

The young man looked at the ground. "Has forty-six brought news?"

Kaien narrowed his eyes. "You... you need to be the one to tell the kid his nee-chan isn't coming back."

"I'm a male, so I won't be able to approach him."

"Try... on the positive side Momo was finally able to get near him and we were working on getting him to speak with her."

Shojiro slipped in through the door, flinching as he saw the boy with toys spread across the bed. The child looked up upon his entering, only to frown. The child didn't have a fit though so he stepped closer and went to sit on the bed. Sitting there he looked at the child, wondering how the boy would in the long run react to him being there.

The child opened up his mouth and smiled. "Momo-nee."

Sojiro flinched upon hearing her name. "No... my name is Kusaka Sojiro."

"Momo-nee."

The young man turned his head to look at Kaien. The other man spoke in a soft tone so as to not alert the child that he was on the other side of the door. "Your reiatsu matches hers."

Frowning he turned towards the boy. "I'm not Momo-nee... but you can call me Sojiro-nii." He watched as the boy frowned at him. "Do I look like Momo-nee?" More silence came.

Finally the boy spoke. "So-nii-nii?"

"Yeah... So-nii-nii." The boy flinched as the child hugged him. The child in truth would remain silent for many years so he didn't know if the child understood what had happened to Momo-nee. To their surprise years later the boy began to speak.

"Hey... Toshiro... can we talk."

"Nii-sama?" The boy looked up at him, his verbal skills having changed to match what he had learned from the Shiba-clan. Toshiro spoke in an odd fashion.

"Do you know what happened to Momo-nee?"

"Nee-san?" The boy blinked a couple of times. "Nee-san reincarnated."

"_Good... he understands._"

"Nee-san reincarnated as you."

Sojiro felt himself flinch. "What do you mean? Actually... how long have you come to that conclusion?"

"One day Nee-san was there, then you are. You had the same reiatsu as her. That can only happen if she died."

"That's not what really happened."

Toshiro stood up. "I don't want to know the truth. You know... sometimes the truth hurts. Like me killing granny like I did."

"It's my fault that your sister is dead." Sojiro watched as the boy titled his head.

"Yeah... but how is that different then what happened between me and granny." The child let out a laugh. "When you talk about nee-san it's as if you cared about her a lot. Plus, you told me that nee-san forgave me for what happened to granny so why can't I forgive you for what ever it was."

Sojiro reached out and ruffled the boy's hair.


	2. Goodbye Sojiro

**Lost Child: Tobiume  
****_~Goodbye Sojiro~_**

Momo's heart hurt and it didn't feel like anything could take away the pain. She was surprised when the other academy student approached her and spoke with her with an interest in Toshiro. In reality this was a relief as she had come to realize that no one in the village had ever taken an interest in her little brother before.

On top of the fact Sojiro asked how Toshiro was doing he asked things like what he was like and the things the two of them choose to do with each other. As she remained with Sojiro she found herself wondering why her heart would beat in a funny manner in her chest or why her cheeks would burn. He didn't have to be around, someone just needed to bring up the young man in a conversation.

He didn't spend any time with her besides speaking to her about her brother. When she went to see Miyako and Toshiro she would tell them about Sojiro. Miyako would listen intently while Toshiro would simply lay on his back staring at the ceiling, his limbs flopped in random directions. "_What I wouldn't give for him to say anything to let me know he was still there._"

"I think you are in love with him."

"Ehhh..."

Momo blinked a couple of times. The comment from Miyako came out of the blue and Toshiro seemed to be reacting to something for once. She shook her head wondering if this could possibly be true, that he was reacting to what they said. Looking at the boy she could see him upside down looking at her, his normally bright teal eyes glazed over.

"Well... at least you're developing a crush on him. That's how I felt when it came to Kaien."

"Mmm... really?"

"Mmm..." Momo looked down at the boy wondering if Toshiro was simply copying the sounds she had made. "_Well... at least it was a response._"

Finally though she came to realize that Miyako was right and tried avoiding the young man. He approached her, a frown on his face. "Something bad didn't happen to your brother did it?"

"N...n... no." Momo found her cheeks burning. Glancing to the side she saw a couple of other females glare at her. "_I just realized... they seem to be glaring at me a lot._"

"Hinamori?"

"I'm sorry." The small female made a quick bow towards the older boy. "I've come to realize I have feelings for you."

There came then a silence. Sojiro let out a sigh. Glancing up from her bowed position she noticed him looking to the side. "You of all people know that I'm focused on my studies."

"I know that. I really had to get that out there. Can we still be friends."

The boy blinked a couple of times. "Yes..." He stared at her as she stood up with a smile on her face. "Can I ask? Why do you like me?"

"Because you care about Shiro-chan."

A chuckle came from the young man. "Well... that's different.'

"What do you mean?" Momo blinked a couple of times.

"I've actually been confessed to a lot of girls and I've had to turn them down. They always told me that they liked me because of my looks, or because I have good grades. That was different." The young man then said something that surprised her. "When I said that you knew of all people that I wished to focus on studies I didn't meet we couldn't date you know."

"But what about your studies?"

"The thing is you _do_ understand that. That's why you didn't tell me." This question caused her to look at the ground. "I thought so. I actually have come to like you as well."

Momo felt her cheeks burn. After that she began to spend more time with Sojiro rather then Izuru and Renji. Izuru of course didn't like this and would bring it up at times only to stop short, almost as if he was holding something back. She would watch him study and in fact it gave her an incentive to improve her own study habits.

"Would you go to the festival with my Hinamori Momo?"

The girl blinked a couple of times before nodding her head. "Only as long as it doesn't interfere with studies." She followed beside him with a smile on her face and Miyako found her a kimono that Sojiro complimented her on. She showed it off to Toshiro but found that he didn't say anything and instead stared at her with a blank look as he sat in Miyako's lap as Miyako clapped his hands for him.

Everything was perfect and Sojiro leaned in for her first kiss when it happened. The voice came into her head in that secluded spot they had chosen to watch the fire works. In front of her appeared a beautiful princess, the thing she honestly aspired to be. This princess bowed to her out of respect"Are you my master?"

"I... I don't know... I mean... I guess you're my zampaktuo"

"My name... my name is Tobiume." The female continued to bow in respect despite the fact Momo didn't feel she deserved it.

"Snap, Tobiume." Her vision cleared and she saw that Sojiro had in his hand the same blade. It was then that they were summoned to the forty-six.

"There can not exist more then one zampaktuo... you have to fight to the death."

"To the death?" Sojiro blinked a couple of times.

"Please..." Momo blinked a couple of times, then shook her head. "How can you ask for us to kill each other! Do you understand what we mean to each other?"

"What do we mean to each other?" The small female turned to look at the young man's eyes and saw that they had for some strange reason changed color. The corner of his mouth twitched. She watched as he drew the blade and at first she thought he was going to swing it at her and she thought the wet substance hitting her face was her own blood, but she felt no pain.

Opening her eyes she saw that Sojiro had stabbed himself. "Gomenasai."

"Sojiro-kun..."

"Tobiume... she's yours. I think the only reason I am able to keep my sanity is because you are my lover and I could never, ever lay a hand on you Momo."

She watched as he collapsed to the ground. A soft rain began to pour down staining the beautiful kimono even more. She found someone sitting next to her. "Momo-chan?"

She looked up and saw Kaien. "Kaien-dono!"

"What happened..." The man frowned at her.

"My zampaktuo..."

"I felt it... but I also felt..."

"Sojiro... he had the same zampaktuo."

A hand reached out and rubbed her head gently, a frown on his face. "The blood on your clothing, you didn't have to take his life so what happened?"

"He took his own." The girl rubbed her eyes as she sobbed. "I'm so glad that you aren't your perverted brother. That would have been embaressing."

"Umm..." The man let out a sigh. "Momo-chan, I never _said_ I was Kaien. I mean, I never said I was him because I was worried about you." The female stopped crying and she blinked a couple of times. A smile spread across his face. "So... did I manage to stop you from crying?"

Instead she began to sob again. "My kimono's soaked."

"So?"

"It's sticking!"

"So... oh." Silence came then and Momo opened her eyes to see that he was looking away as if he was uncomfortable with the situation.

Letting out a deep breath he scooped her up into his arms. "As if I would hit on my cute little niece." There came a laugh. "Gosh! I never thought I'd ever be saying what I've heard uncle say about Kyo-chan!"

"Shiba Taicho?"

"Nah... it's Uncle Isshin." The man continued forward. "Kaien and Miyako are attached to you and Shiro-chan. Did you know that they can't have children of their own? While what happened to you and Shiro-chan is painful to the both of you, it really is a blessing to us."

"But... I have to get back before curfew."

"Don't worry. I'll send a letter. Not to mention I'm thinking the forty-nine are already aware of the situation." Isshin took her back to the Shiba compound where his sister took care of her and got her into bed.

Momo slept for a few days and returned to the academy. Sojiro's death was covered up, something Isshin had forewarned her about. She found herself getting glared from the other girls who seemed upset. Finally one of the girls approached her, telling her flat to her face that she blamed Momo for Sojiro's death and called her a few other names.

Thankfully the adoption Kaien and Miyako were arranging went through and she was able to graduate early. They told her that she could go into any division she wanted with their blessing but she in fact found herself wishing to be left alone. She didn't even want to see Toshiro as she worried how she would effect the small child.

Kaien and Miyako made the decision to bring Toshiro home to the Shiba clan residence and she heard his soft footsteps. He simply looked at her with a glazed look in his eyes as she sat there, shocked that they had brought him. His body was weak and he stumbled a bit. Unohana and Miyako let go of the child's hand and he crawled over to her.

She watched as he crawled into her lap and simply sat there, facing her. She blinked a couple of times, not at all sure what to make of this action. The first thing he did was play with her mouth while staring at her with that glazed over look on his face. She then realized he was trying to make her face smile. She wrapped her arms around him and buried her head into his small shoulder and sobbed. "I love you Shiro-chan. I love you so, so much."


End file.
